The honeymoon is over and now married life begins.
Sureka Fernando asks: can you live n harmony with
your in- aws7

happy

wedding

25-year-old Kajal
mily behind in her

Patel left her
native Indian
of Anand to start her new
wn
in London, she was justifiably
ervous. Not only was she going to
marry a man she had met only twice before, but she was
about to spend the rest of her life living with his family.
en

She reveals: "I met my husband, Hiren, in India when
my family were looking for prospective husbands for me.
We were actually searching for someone from the States
because have family there, but my uncle met Hiren at a
party and he mentioned he was iooking for a wife. My uncle
found out a bit about him and then introduced us. Luckily,
we hit it off straight away !"
with how ,,•olite and
educated Hiren seemed. Although he was ha•._/%ome, it
really
was his overwhelming respect and decency that
impressed her.

Kajal

Hiren and

Kajal with

immediately

struck

But she still wasn't sure he was the man of her dreams. "It
was hard to form a first impression as both our families ;•piled into my uncle's house where we first met, recalls
Kajal. "But something felt right and the next day my mum
got a call to say Hiren would like to see me again.

his mother and sister Tina

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was

218

abfeature
excited and Went to meet Hiren in
parlour in Gujarat. That afternoon
al• ice cream
chatted for hours. He told me that he
we just
used to be a doctor but quit to do an MBA and
was now working at management level for
Elsevier publishers. [ 'lnd him very easy to
talk to and told him that had been studying
marketing in London Metropolitan University
for the past four years and was now working
in an accountancy role for Holiday Inn, which

'°l

quite

was

really enjoyed.

looking %r
told him that
was
who really respects and cares about
me. Fm a very family oriented person so if
don'• have my family around, find it very
difficult to survive.

"l a!so

somebody

explained

"I

therefore needed an
could become part of his
He said he understood."
that

environment where

family.

and Hiren got engaged in a traditional
ceremony in India on January 29 but the couple
didn't see each other again until Valentine's

Kajal
Day.

planned to come to London as a surprise
for Hiren, with the help of his mum," smiles
Kajal. "And I've been living with his family
ever since."
"I

"•t

was

close
to

she admits. "Being very
in India, it was hard for me
in with another family in

really scary,"

to my

mum

imagine fitting

London."
"But Hiren's mum and sister made it very easy
for me to settle in and treated me like their
own daughter and sister."

Kajal's

one

never having the chance
who died when he was 18.
an amazing man," she says.

regret is

to meet Hiren's dad

•Tve heard he

was

have now been married six
"Hiren and
months and I've never auued with his mum
although do have one ru•-ning argument with
?Fliren- won't let him have a pet as have an
absolutely irrational fear of cats and dogs and
I'm not sure he'll ever forgive me for that."
"But his mum and share a good understanding
and we compromise to make things work."

"Obviously,

conflicts could come up in the
future but I'd like to think that we could talk
it over and there would be enough respect,
understanding and love to get over whatever
obstacles we are faced with." tO